After transmigrating into the book, I helped my mother reconcile with her divorced husband.

Though her voice was soft, it reached everyone's ears. Ji Wanwan, the mother, wore a smile on her face, but secretly pinched Lu Jinyao several times. Lu Jinyao dared not make a sound, gritting her teeth and enduring it, but a hint of hatred flickered in her eyes as she glanced at Lu Zhiyuan.

Lu Zhiyuan felt wronged. It was clearly Lu Jinyao who started the couplet contest, and now she was blaming her for losing. She really couldn't accept defeat.

Madam Lu tried to smooth things over again: "It's getting late, everyone please take your seats."

Although it was a family banquet, there were still rules to follow. For example, the seating wasn't just for anyone. The seat to Old Madam Lu's left was originally Xie Chaoyun's, but out of respect for the Lu clan head, Xie Chaoyun gave it to him. The seat to her right, which should have been Lu Huai's, was taken by the ignorant Lu Jingyuan.

The maidservant offered a suggestion, but the protective Old Madam Lu stopped her, saying she was happy to have Jingyuan sit in front of her. Upon hearing this, many people turned their attention to Xie Chaoyun and Lu Zhiyuan.

You should know that Lu Zhiyuan is the legitimate daughter of the Marquis's family and the granddaughter of the old lady Lu. Even if the elders dote on the younger generation, Lu Zhiyuan should be sitting in front of the old lady Lu.

Thinking of the rumors circulating outside, everyone's expression changed.

After the seating arrangements were shuffled, figuring out where to sit became a problem.

After a moment's thought, Lu Huai sat down next to the clan leader. Seeing that there were still empty seats, Ji Wanwan quickly took the seat next to Lu Huai, twisting her body to sit down. However, as soon as she sat down, she attracted everyone's attention. Dozens of eyes stared at her, making her feel extremely uncomfortable and her scalp tingling.

Lu Zhiyuan kindly reminded her, "Aunt Ji, you are sitting in my mother's seat."

Ji Wanwan blushed and looked at Lu Huai with a helpless expression.

Lu Huai frowned slightly, revealing a hint of displeasure. He hadn't expected Ji Wanwan to be so ill-mannered. Seeing that Lu Huai was unwilling to speak up for her, Ji Wanwan twisted her hands and stood up, looking aggrieved.

Just as she thought she could sit next to Xie Chaoyun, a maidservant from beside Old Madam Lu came over and led her and Lu Jinyao to the seats directly opposite the head of the table. Even Xie Chaoyun, who came from a humble background, knew that this was the worst seat at the banquet.

Ji Wanwan gritted her teeth and pinched Lu Jinyao under the table to vent her anger.

Before they'd even had enough of embarrassing themselves here, Lu Jingyuan started yelling, "Eat meat! I want the meat from the very center of the plate!"

Dining in a noble household has its own set of rules. All the dishes are served by maids. If the master wants something to eat, he only needs to give a look, and the maid will bring the dish to him in a small dish.

Whether you like it or not, you only take one bite. There's no reason to bring an entire plate of food to yourself, especially since there are outsiders at this banquet.

Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, Lu Jingyuan simply threw down his chopsticks and climbed onto the table using a stool. When Old Madam Lu saw this, she quickly called out "My dear grandson" a few times, which frightened the maids so much that they used both hands and feet to pull him back.

Lu Huai was about to lose his temper when Xie Chaoyun said, "Since Jingyuan likes it, let the kitchen prepare another dish and send it to Mother's courtyard. Please don't be offended, everyone. This child has come from Weinan, and he must be starving after traveling so far. What are you all standing there for? Put the biggest piece of meat into Jingyuan's bowl."

Xie Chaoyun's words revealed three pieces of information. First, Lu Jingyuan was living with Old Madam Lu, a privilege even Lu Zhiyuan had never received, making his identity highly suspicious. Second, he came from Weinan. Lu Huai had gone to Weinan on official business from the capital—what a coincidence! Third, this child was ill-mannered, largely due to his upbringing and parental upbringing. Even if she later refused her mother-in-law's suggestion, the Lu clan wouldn't be able to say anything against such a child who lacked manners.

Lu Huai didn't think too deeply about it; he simply believed that Lu Jingyuan was immature and spoiled by his biological mother. He was destined to inherit the Marquis's mansion, and he couldn't be so unruly. Besides glaring at Ji Wanwan, he solidified his idea of ​​having Lu Jingyuan adopted by Xie Chaoyun so that Xie Chaoyun could help educate him.

Ji Wanwan held her breath, not understanding where things went wrong. Before returning to the capital with Lu Huai, she had a dream in which Lu Zhiyuan became an idiot, Xie Chaoyun went to the neighboring county, and she and her children were the center of attention at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet. Now, however, she had lost face, and even the old lady of the Lu family looked at Lu Jingyuan with a hint of disdain.

After the meal, Xie Chaoyun stayed by Madam Lu's side, serving her tea, while Lu Huai led the household steward to see off the clan leader and the guests.

After the men left the main hall, the room became much quieter.

Madam Lu took a sip of the tea Xie Chaoyun handed her and asked with a smile, "This is snow water you collected from the plum blossoms in the backyard last winter, isn't it?"

Xie Chaoyun replied, "Mother is truly amazing. Yunniang herself can't tell the difference, she only knows that the plum blossom snow tea has a natural plum blossom fragrance. It's a pity that Yunniang's palate is not very discerning."

Seeing this, Ji Wanwan stepped forward and said, "It is indeed tea brewed from snow that has fallen on plum trees. It not only has a strong plum fragrance, but it is also clearer and smoother than ordinary spring water. When Huai-ge was in school, he loved to drink this. Wanwan always brewed it for him herself."

Old Madam Lu glanced at her: "If you can't speak, just pretend you're mute."

Having swallowed his anger, he forced himself to keep the rest of what he wanted to say.

Seeing that her mother had been wronged, Lu Jinyao pinched her fingertips, picked up the tea in front of her, and walked over to Lu Zhiyuan, who was resting with her eyes closed. The original owner of this body was weak, and had just sat upright for half an hour at the banquet, so she felt uncomfortable all over and just wanted to sit quietly.

As the shadow fell, I heard Firefly behind me say, "My young lady is tired. If Miss Jinyao still wants to compose couplets, why don't we go to Fangfei Courtyard another day? I'll brew you some tea. It's pre-rain Longjing tea, sent by my maternal uncle. It's an excellent tea."

The firefly's words had a double meaning, pointing out both her defeat and implying her lack of knowledge.

Lu Zhiyuan slowly opened her eyes: "Liu Ying, don't be so presumptuous!"

She raised her eyes, stood up, and faced Lu Jinyao: "My girl is straightforward and outspoken, so please don't take it to heart, Sister Jinyao."

Lu Jinyao said with a pale face, "Sister, you are overthinking it! I am new to the Marquis's residence and will need your help in the future."

The teacup is tilted slightly as the tea is raised, the purpose of which is self-evident.

"Oh dear, what is Sister Jinyao doing? Could it be that you are harboring resentment towards me because you couldn't match my couplet?"

Lu Zhiyuan clutched her wrist, which had been scalded by the tea, looking pitiful. Lu Jinyao stood there, stunned, not understanding how the tea had ended up on Lu Zhiyuan. Those pitiful words should have come from Lu Zhiyuan's mouth.

Liu Ying shoved Lu Jinyao away and said sternly, "I've never seen a girl like this before. She comes to someone else's house for refuge and hurts the young lady on her very first day."

Lu Jinyao tried to explain, but Liu Ying suddenly knelt down on the ground with a thud.

"Madam, Madam, we beg you to do justice for my young lady. She is already frail and sickly; how can she endure such treatment?"

As he spoke, he glared fiercely at Lu Jinyao.